Howth Yacht Club Optimist dinghy siblings Sienna and Rocco Wright have struck again Down Under!

This time the pair won their respective divisions in Sydney's Optimist Regatta with an extraordinary string of first places in each of their divisions over the past three days. Results here

As Afloat reported earlier this month, Optimist ace Rocco won the 2019 Sail Sydney Optimist Open Championships on December 14.

Next stop is the Australian National Championships which begins on Jan 2nd. 

In what is turning into epic sailing trip for the Wrights, the children's father Darren is the skipper of the Howth Yacht Club entry in the Sydney Hobart offshore Race that starts this St. Stephen's Day. More on that here.

Optimist ace Rocco Wright of Howth Yacht Club has won the 2019 Sail Sydney Optimist Open Championships this weekend, just ten days before his father starts the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race.

It completes a remarkable season for the youngster, back in July Wright took 10th overall in the Worlds, and then in October, he notched second overall in the North Americans, giving him Ireland’s best international performance in 2019 and an Afloat Sailor of the Month award to boot! 

It's not the only Wright Optimist win of the weekend either, with Rocco's sister Sienna claiming the intermediate prize in Sydney.

WM Nixon writes about Rocco's father and the upcoming Howth Yacht Club Sydney Hobart Race challenge here. 

Sail Sydney results here

Last weekend 22 young Optimist sailors participated in IODAI’s newly formed Development Squad hosted by Malahide Yacht Club. The first in a series of training weekends and under the supervision of head coach Adam D'Arcy and his team, the young sailors were put through their paces on Saturday morning in wind of around 15 kts, before being split into groups for the afternoon session.

Sunday morning dawned foggy and without a breath of wind, the team undertook theory and physical training session as they awaited suitable wind to fill-in. Then in the afternoon as the breeze increased the fleet managed to complete 3 races.

“This is a great initiative by IODAI to encourage and train younger sailors during the winter months. We at MYC were honoured to host the first part of the training programme and look forward to welcoming all back in the near future” says Paddy Ryan, Optimist Class Captain, Malahide Yacht Club.

If you have a young optimist sailor who would like to participate in IODAI training programmes then Baltimore during the February half term is your next opportunity.

To capture the enthusiasm and momentum of the growing Optimist dinghy fleet, IODAI (Irish Optimist Dinghy Association) has launched a new training initiative for junior fleet sailors, known as the “Junior development Squad”.

Tim Lucas, President of IODAI says “Our focus is the development of optimist sailing in all clubs throughout Ireland and we wanted to develop the sailing skills of the new juniors within our fleet. This “JDS” - Junior Development Squad is a training initiative designed for the younger less experienced sailors in the fleet, ideally, those sailors under 12 who wish to improve their skills sets, over the winter period”

This personalised training schedule will take place over a period of two weekends cumulating with participation at our very successful Baltimore training week.

This programme is due to start the 5th November 2019, so those interested in participating in this “IODAI Development Squad for 2020” can find more details here

The annual Baltimore Week is open to all sailors in February 2020 during the mid-term from 16-21 Feb 2020.

JP Curtin leads the Optimist dinghy Cobbler League Main Fleet after nine races sailed at Royal Cork Yacht Club writes Bob Bateman.

Second is Crosshaven sailor Harry Moynan with Tralee Bay Sailing Club's Riona McMorrow Moriarty in third place in the 20-boat main fleet. 

Full results are here. Photo gallery below.

When young James Dwyer Matthews of Royal Cork and Kinsale returned in early August from England with the 2019 British Optimist title added to his already impressive trophy list, it was in the knowledge that the up-coming Irish Nationals at Howth had attracted a fleet of 185 boats from 11 nations, with a notably strong American squad in the midst of it. Thus an almost unfair amount of expectation was resting on his 15-year-old shoulders in his final season as an Optimist sailor, and for much of the series, it was the extremely competent American helm Freddie Parkin who remained persistently if narrowly in the lead. But when the last day proved to be El Bruto with some very grown-up weather, Matthews was the man for it. Having taken a useful third in the penultimate race while Parkin was fourth, the chance was there, and Matthews took it, returning a convincing win while Parkin had to make it a discard with a tenth, leaving Matthews a clear winner with 15 points to Parkin’s 21, while 14-year-old Luke Turvey of the host club was third with 28, having taken second in that final bloodbath.

The weather gods conspired against sailors on the final day of the 2019 Optimist Nationals At Howth YC.

The senior fleet were sent out first this morning on their own in a strong breeze, to race and to test the conditions for the younger fleets. This turned out be an inspired call by the race committee as the wind immediately started to build. The seniors then enjoyed a race in exhilarating conditions with capsizes and nosedives aplenty. The cream always rises to the top, and James Dwyer Matthews of RCYC / KYC finished the event in fine style with another bullet. However conditions were deteriorating with gusts in excess of 30 knots, and the decision was rightly taken to bring sailors ashore.

With the help of this final race win, James Dwyer Matthews emerged as the winner of both the Irish Nationals and Open titles, with Freddie Parkin of USA in second overall. They were followed by Luke Turvey, Rocco Wright and Johnny Flynn - all of HYC.

James Dwyer Matthews of RCYC / KYC receives his ISA Gold Medal from Colin Kavanagh of the ISA. James also won the UK Nationals overall in Weymouth last month

With no change in the Juniors, the event was won by Nathan Pine of Team USA. William Walsh of HYC / TBSC / MYC was the deserving winner of the Junior Irish Nationals crown from Des Turvey and Cillian Twomey, both from the host club.

William Walsh of HYC / TBSC / MYC receives his Junior Nationals Trophy from Tim Lucas, President of IODAI

The coached Regatta Fleet was won by Conor Cronin from Malahide.

Closing ceremony of the Irish Optimist Nationals

A very well attended closing ceremony and prize-giving followed that was enjoyed by all. The host club Howth YC under the leadership of the main event organiser Darren Wright, and aided by a 70+ strong team of volunteers ran a superb event, with the bar raised significantly for RCYC who will host the event as part of their 300 years anniversary celebrations next year. 

Full results here

Saturday brought a change of fortune for sailors at the Optimist National Championships at Howth Yacht Club with champagne sailing conditions that overflowed a little for some.

The seniors were the main action of the day. They got four races in to make up for the challenges of the previous day. Freddie Parkin from Team USA is leading the field after eight races into the last day, with James Dwyer Matthews from RCYC hot on his heels and leading the Irish Nationals. The locals though have not given up the fight with Luke Turvey, Rocco Wright and Johnny Flynn - all of HYC still in contention. Sam Ledoux from Dun Laoghaire who was well in contention, suffered a broken rudder which hurt his chances - however, a 2nd discard which will happen after the next race could bring him back into the mix.

The Juniors only got two races in, as the building wind that gusted in excess of 25/26 knots was too much for some of these younger and lighter sailors. The decision was taken to send them home after two exhilarating races, but at that stage, there were probably too many boats ending up upside down. Nathan Pine from the USA is leading out the Juniors with USA & GBR sailors filling the first 4 places. William Walsh from the host club (and TBSC / MYC) is leading the Irish challenge and the Junior Nationals with a highly credible 5th position in a strong international field. He is followed in the Irish Nationals by Des Turvey and Cillian Twomey, both also of HYC and with a lot to do if they are to take the national title.

In the Regatta Fleet, Conor Cronin from Malahide leads going into the finals day, followed by Benjamin Barry of RCYC. However again the locals have not given up the chase again here, with Keelan Darby from Howth YC pushing them all the way.

Racing concludes on Sunday. Results are here

Day 2 was a difficult day at the Optimist National Championships at Howth Yacht Club for all concerned with the vagaries of the Irish sailing conditions making it very challenging for both sailors and organisers alike.

Sailors were held ashore as an early gale warning had been issued, but was due to blow through. The fleets launched 2 hours later in a dropping breeze, which was shifting significantly across the race course. The junior fleet got away after a general recall, only for the race to be abandoned because of a massive shift before the leaders reached the first mark. This was followed by numerous failed attempts to start the junior fleet under U Flag, a few Black Flag starts and the jury boats encouraging sailors to remain behind the line. With no other options available to the race committee under the Sailing Instructions to get the fleets away, the difficult decision was taken to send the Junior Fleet ashore without a race.

Then it was the turn of the Senior Fleet.... At the second attempt the fleet got away cleanly. A quite significant shift on the first beat penalised a number of the boats, while other took advantage. George Pritchard from MBSC / RCYC sailed a flawless race to take the race from Stephen Momeier and Pearse Dowd from Team USA.

The fifth race in the senior race started then in a medium breeze. However as the fleet rounded the first mark, a torrential rain shower began which also brought extremely poor and disorienting visibility. The race committee took the only decision possible in the interests of safety to abandon the race and for safety boats to corral the fleet. The fleet was then sent home after a long day on the water, of course as the sun came out! A number of the higher-ranked Irish sailors will anxiously be hoping for at least nine races to be sailed in the event due to finish on Sunday, in order to access a second discard.

Meanwhile, the Regatta Fleet (coached racing) which was positioned off Claremont Beach sailed serenely on! This fleet has now completed 7 races, with results to be uploaded later.

The forecast for Saturday is promising steadier winds, which will hopefully facilitate some catching up of races not sailed today.

All results are available here

Day one completed at the 2019 Optimist Nationals in Howth Yacht Club, with three good races in a real mix of conditions for the main fleets - senior and junior.

The day started with 16-20 knots of breeze but this reduced over the day, offering something for everyone. A fairly significant shift on the first beat of the last race caught out quite a few boats, and asked questions of some of the leading contenders.

The Regatta Fleet (coached racing) were held ashore for a while until the wind reduced, but they then got 3 races in, with Benjamin Barry from RCYC taking the lead after day 1 from Conor Cronin of Malahide YC and Keelan Darby of the host club.

In the Senior Fleet, Freddie Parkin of Team USA has opened up a commanding lead with three excellent races behind him already. He is followed by a number of the leading lights of the Irish Optimist scene with James Dwyer Matthews of RCYC / KYC in second and Johnny Flynn of HYC / RStGYC in third. One of the pre-event favourites Rocco Wright is hot on their heels.

In the junior section, the international competitors are showing their strength, with USA and GBR sailors filling the first 8 places, led by Nathan Pine of USA. William Walsh of TBSC / HYC / MYC is leading the Irish charge, followed by Cillian Twomey and Des Turvey from Howth.

The Principal Race Officer David Lovegrove patiently waited for the sailors to find their starting manners, with a few recalls in each fleet in the first race. However, the U Flag and Black Flag then appeared, with first time starts then being the order of the day.

A bit more wind is forecast for Friday which promises an exciting day for all.

Results are here.